terminal
noun · adjective · verb
Simple meaning
A building in an airport where passengers transfer from ground transportation to the facilities that allow them to board airplanes.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
turmuhnuhlSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈtɝmənəl
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
Station where transport vehicles load or unload passengers or goods
A harbour facility where ferries embark and disembark passengers and load and unload vehicles.
A rail station where service begins and ends; the end of the line. For example: Grand Central Terminal in New York City.
A building in an airport where passengers transfer from ground transportation to the facilities that allow them to board airplanes.
A town lying at the end of a railroad, in which the terminal is located; more properly called a terminus.
A contact on an electrical device (such as a battery) at which electric current enters or leaves
adjective
Occurring at the end of a word, sentence, or period of time, and serves to terminate it
Being or situated at an end
Appearing at the end; top or apex of a physical object.
Fatal; resulting in death.
verb
To store bulk liquids (such as oil or chemicals) in storage tanks prior to further distribution.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A2 · Elementary (estimated)
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- General English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Station where transport vehicles load or unload passengers or goods
Used this way, terminal is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
A system of words used to name things in a particular discipline.
A coming to an end of a contract period.
At the end.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
Having a computer act exactly like a terminal.
A statue or a human bust or an animal carved out of the top of a square pillar.
Final leave before discharge from military service.
Final or latest limiting point.
The constant maximum velocity reached by a body falling through the atmosphere under the attraction of gravity.
A terminal that serves bus passengers.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
Shrub with terminal tufts of elongated leaves used locally for thatching and clothing.
Slow-growing Japanese evergreen subshrub having terminal spikes of white flowers.
Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.